


The Last Cupcake

by Elenhin



Category: The Almighty Johnsons
Genre: Cupcakes, Gen, The last one, grow
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-24
Updated: 2014-03-24
Packaged: 2018-01-16 21:05:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,075
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1361767
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elenhin/pseuds/Elenhin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>As it appears there was more to come from 'Tall', here it is, the last Cupcake. </p>
<p>Anders always wanted better for Axl than to be short, knowing only too well that it makes you fair game for bullies, Axl is not sure if getting the last cupcake will make any difference, but well....</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Last Cupcake

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Aramirandme81](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aramirandme81/gifts).



_** The Last Cupcake ** _

 

Seeing Anders talk  to Olaf Axl can’t help but burst out into a giggle, and he only laughs harder when Anders turns to glare at him. He can’t help it, it looks so funny because Olaf has stepped right up to Anders which means his big brother has to tilt his head back at an awkward angle to look their grandfather in the eye. 

 

“You are such a dwarf,” he laughs and Anders glares at him. 

 

“Oh, that’s fucking mature,” Anders states dryly, half glaring at him. 

 

“Really,” Axl beams as he stands next to them. Putting his hand on the crown of Anders head he slides it over to his chest, measuring just how high Anders will reach on him. Mike snickers a little while Ty sighs. Anders really do not like being made fun off on account of his height and Ty don’t blame him. With all the crap he took as a kid for being short it’s no wonder he’s fed up with it. 

 

“You are a fucking dwarf,” Axl giggles. “Just look at this.” 

 

“Call me dwarf again, and I’ll get a ladder and hit you over the head,” Anders squares his shoulders and now Ty laughs. At least Anders has a sense of self irony. 

 

“Leave it Axl,” he calls from the kitchen area. Why he always winds up baking is more than he knows, but it does help to relieve the tension that tends to build up between the four brothers. If Axl wouldn’t pick on Anders, and Anders wouldn’t be a prick, and if Mike wouldn’t let them be asses to each others anyway. As strained as their relationship is at times, he figures they are just one chocolate chip cookie away from killing each other. 

 

“Why?” Axl turns around, still with his hand showing how small his brother is. 

 

“He can’t exactly help it, can he?” Ty points out. “Trust me, Anders didn’t grow short on purpose just for the amusement of any brainless jerk who wanted to make a crack at his expense.”

 

“But he’s tiny,” Axl objects. “He should be bigger, shouldn’t he?” 

 

The glare Anders gives him, and the way he draws a deep breath as if trying to calm himself makes Mike groan. 

 

“I said leave it,” Ty gives him a challenging glare. “Or do you want to have a go at me too? I might be taller than Anders, but I’m shorter than you, so how about it?” 

 

“Eh, no thanks,” Axl might not be scared of Anders, he’s tiny and a pussy, but he knows better than to mess with Ty. Ty can look really dangerous when he gets mad, and Ty might stand up for Anders. Mike hardly ever does, but Ty will do so with annoying frequency. It’s like he does not approve of you picking on Anders. Anders sure don’t look very happy and he steps behind the counter where Ty is, which really is not fair. When Axl tried to do that before Ty chased him off saying it was off limits since he was baking. He won’t let them close when he’s doing that. He says they eat too much and bother him, but he will let Anders. 

 

If anyone should be denied it’s Anders who’s small and weak. 

 

Axl can’t even get close enough to see what kind of cupcakes Ty are making, but Anders even gets to help him mix the ingredients together. 

 

He finds it very annoying and is about to object but then realizes it might not be quite worth angering Ty. If he does get angry he’s going to take Anders’ side for sure. 

 

It’s annoying but true, so he hangs back instead, they will after all get more or less equal shares of the cupcakes. That much he knows and that much he will make sure off. 

 

It’s Mike who first frowns at the cupcakes, noting how they look nothing like the ones Ty usually make. “What are those?” he wants to know. 

 

“Did Anders ruin them?” Axl demands as he picks one up. 

 

“Oat cupcakes,” Ty supplies. “They’re healthier, just as good though.” 

 

“But cupcakes aren’t supposed to be healthy,” Axl objects, hesitating, 

 

Both Anders and Mike has started eating though so Axl tries them, and finds that they are just as good. A bit different, they do not taste the same, but they are good. When there are four left Ty turns away to start clearing up the kitchen, that means they can each have one more, and someone will get the last one. Mike appears to be satisfied with the one he has, but Anders for once are doing away with them surprisingly quickly meaning he too might want the last one. 

 

Axl does the only thing he can, crams the last bite into his mouth and snatches it up with a triumphant grin. Anders gives him a disgusted look but Axl is feeling pleased with himself. Holding it up when Anders’ eyes narrows. If he holds it up in the air he knows Anders will give up. He always does, trying to reach for it makes him look so much shorter which is why he will not do it. He has used the same tactic ever since Anders gave up the attempts at wrestling him for it. The wrestling was a sure way to win as he is bigger and stronger than Anders and has been so ever since he became a teenager. Though he does feel a little bit guilty about all the times Anders has gotten hurt during those wrestling games. Sometimes purely by accident, but sometimes because Axl did not really care what happened to Anders as long as he got his way.

 

There is some satisfaction in besting your older brother, but there’s a lot of guilt in seeing him trying to manage with a cast several weeks after. Anders never said anything about not being able to go on the field trip. He never complained about Axl breaking his nose, never brought it up again. It’s as if he does not even think about it, but Axl knows he must becuase sometimes there is a brief moment of fear and hesitation in his eyes. He might not be the most observant, really he’s not at all. He hates subtleties because they are so easy to miss and mistake. 

 

Some things you can’t mistake though, the look in Anders eye when Axl grabbed him to push him back from the counter. It was pure fear, Anders didn’t draw back then, he threw himself back and away from Axl. Because Axl had long ago learned he could not argue with Anders, Anders always won their verbal disagreements so he would use brute strength instead. he would tackle him and hit him, wrestle him down and he did not care all that much if he hurt him becuase everyone always said that Anders was a wimp. The way Axl saw that it meant that Anders wasn’t really hurt, he just whined anyway. He’d rub his arm and complain, but he would never say anything to Val or Mike so that meant he was just being a pussy, right? 

 

So when Val left seven cookies for them and he saw Anders reach for the only one left he grabbed him hard and Anders threw himself back. That was the first time Axl saw him looking truly scared. 

 

“I was gonna divide it,” Anders snapped, a tremble in his voice. “So we could share.” 

 

“You don’t have to be so greedy Axl,” Ty gave him a disapproving look. If he hadn’t seen Anders look scared he would have noticed the look Ty gave him. Ty hardly ever looked at you like that, and he never scolded. They both tended to indulge Axl, because he was the smallest. They both left then, so he got the cookie, but he didn’t really enjoy it as much as he had thought he would. Chocolate chip cookies does not taste very good when you’re brother is scared of you. 

 

Mike only stepped in when he found Anders sitting at the kitchen table, so dazed he hardly knew where he was. Axl had shut himself into his room becuase he knew he had gone too far and he was scared becuase he knew he had hurt Anders. He hadn’t even stayed to see if he was okay, he had not meant to hurt him which was about all he could say for his defence. He had been mad becuase Anders would not take him to Zeb as he claimed he did not have time. Axl did not want to wait for Mike so he started arguing with Anders, and hit him so hard he fell. 

 

It might have been fine if Anders had not hit his head on the edge of the table, and had not caught his hand under himself as he fell. 

 

Axl had run out of there the second he realized Anders was actually hurt, slamming his bedroom door shut. 

 

Mike had not been happy, Ty had been furious and Anders had been concussed and generally confused about things for a couple of days. Valerie had mostly been angry over the fact that she had to take care of Anders when she claimed she had too much to do. 

 

Apparently planning for a major field trip and trying to keep track of someone who can get confused enough to stand in front of an open fridge for fifteen minutes and just stare is not easy. 

 

He could sympathize with that now, he regretted it. 

 

He never really apologized though, becuase he was too scared to face Anders at first, and then Anders seemed to have forgotten all about it so Axl just figured it was easier to let it slide. 

 

The weirdest thing was that even after that Anders acted the same as before. He pushed Axl to drink milk even though he hated it himself. He insisted on vegetables and he would just shrug and say it would help him grow when Axl demanded to know why. 

 

Seeing as how he was already taller than Anders he did not see the point, but he figured that the taller he got, the cooler and tougher he would be and the less likely he would be a wimp like Anders. 

 

Life was easier when he thought taller was braver and better. 

 

Before he realized that tall could make you a bully because when you used your height and strength against someone smaller, it did not matter if that someone is your brother or not. It does not matter if your brother is older, you have no right doing that just becuase you can, it just makes you into the worst kind of bully. 

 

To have Anders wish for his baby brother to grow taller even though that same brother was already bullying him, that was really amazing. It was true strength of character. Anders would have had every right to hope Axl would stop growing, but he did not. 

 

Holding the last cupcake now he thought about how generous and brave Anders really had been. 

 

Sighing softly he holds it out to his brother, “you can have it.” 

 

Anders looks at him suspiciously, as if he expects him to hold it up out of reach the second Anders moves  to take it. 

 

“I think I uh, I think I already had enough,” he manages. “I mean, they were healthy right? Good for you, and uh, I don’t think it’ll make you grow, but it can’t hurt, can it?” 

 

“I think you should have stopped after ‘I had enough’,” Anders decides as he takes it. “That was good, the rest was just offensive.” 

 

“Eh, yeah, sorry,” he nods shifting his feet. “I just well, you are really small and kind of a dwarf, but I just, well, it’s okay Anders. You don’t need to be any bigger really, you’re, well, kinda big enough as you are,” he’s fidgeting and he’s not sure if Anders has the slightest clue what he’s trying to say. Mike is looking at him as if he thinks he’s nuts. Ty is looking amused, and well, as if he wants to laugh at Axl.   
  
Anders however simply nods and shrugs, calmly eating the cupcake as if he knows exactly what Axl is trying to say.   
  
**The End**

  
  
_Please comment, the Cricket is hungry..._

  
  



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